My internship is with The Chronicle, a small weekly newspaper in upstate NY. I started at the very end of May, and they sent me to a local theme park to attend the official opening a new ride. It was super exciting to be given that sort of opportunity at the very beginning of my time at the paper--literally it was the first things I did--but also be the only writer to cover the launch.
Since then I have been doing quite a few different things, from writing briefs to writing articles. I have three written at this point and all three are relatively substantial subjects in that they are big events or issues in our area, so I am definitely learning a lot.
I have also been assisting in various office tasks, like filing and putting together press kits and handing out the paper in the community. Small papers like this really interest me because everyone is expected to contribute to the mundane parts of a company, like the filing and the press kits, and there's a sense of equality that isn't really present in bigger papers.
That said, before the first day was over I could see that everyone had a ton of experience and knowledge I could benefit from, and I'm enjoying the learning process. Cathy, my supervisor, has been a huge help with edits and any other questions I may have.
Everyone is really accommodating with my schedule, because I have plans to travel to Ireland for two weeks at the end of June, and I have another job that consumes my nights and weekends. I got really lucky in that I can fit my fifteen hours in during the morning, three hours per day during the week, and they always have something new for me to try and do when I come in the next day.
It's always good when people are accommodating like that. Having a good supervisor pretty much determines whether or not it's a good experience most of the time. What sort events have you written about?
ReplyDeleteI understand what you're going through, dealing with a part time job and an internship at the same time. I'm going through the same thing. It's not fun, but such is life. I'm glad to see you've managed it so well. We all have to make money somehow, right?
ReplyDeleteI think it's awesome you got to go to a theme park for your first assignment. What was theme park and the new ride? I'm just curious.
Also, I see you're going to Ireland soon. I don't even need to tell you what a fun time you'll have. I just returned to the States over a month ago after studying abroad in Dublin and I'm desperate to go back.
Hi Jillian,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it sounds like you've found a place that is really relevant to the kind of experience you're looking to get and is flexible with your schedule.
The opportunities they've given you in the office and out in the community sound great, too. I'm wondering--what is something they maybe haven't asked you to do yet or brought up that you'd like to accomplish this summer?